Federal sub-agency · Department of Health and Human Services

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality obligated $17.8M on federal contracts in FY2026 across 16 contract actions (+13% vs FY2025). Its largest recipient was WESTAT, INC. ($8.9M). It also awarded $42M in federal grants and other assistance in FY2026.

Obligations · FY2026
$17.8M
Actions
16
New awards: 0
Sole-source
0.0%
Small business
35%
Open in the contracts explorerRelationship graphFederal contracts

Spending by fiscal year

Obligations per federal fiscal year (October–September).

  1. 119.7MFY2017
  2. 131.7MFY2018
  3. 135.1MFY2019
  4. 371.9MFY2020
  5. 109.9MFY2021
  6. -12.8MFY2022
  7. 62.4MFY2023
  8. 43.5MFY2024
  9. 15.8MFY2025
  10. 17.8MFY2026

Top recipients

Obligations in FY2026.

  1. WESTAT, INC.$8.9M50%
  2. COMMUNICATIONS TRAINING ANALYSIS CORPORATION$4M23%
  3. CORMAC CORPORATION$2.1M12%
  4. NATIONAL OPINION RESEARCH CENTER$2M11%
  5. ABT GLOBAL LLC$789.5K4.4%
  6. MAYO CLINIC$00.0%
  7. OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY$00.0%
  8. RESEARCH TRIANGLE INSTITUTE$00.0%
  9. KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITALS-$7,3640.0%
  10. UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA-$71.1K0.0%

What was bought · Where the work was performed

Obligations in FY2026.

What was bought

  1. Professional services$13.8M77%
  2. IT & telecom$4M23%

Where the work was performed

  1. Maryland$9.7M55%
  2. Virginia$6.2M35%
  3. Illinois$2M11%

Integrity signals

Shares of the year's obligations, next to the country's.

  • Low competition4.0%
    US 39% · $711.1K
  • Sole-source awards0.0%
    US 30% · $0
  • Single-offer competitions4.0%
    US 8.7% · $711.1K
  • Urgency justifications0.0%
    US 5.1% · $0
  • Year-end rush77%
    US 6.1% · $13.8M
  • Undefinitized contracts0.0%
    US 5.0% · $0
  • Time-and-materials pricing50%
    US 4.2% · $8.9M

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Largest awards

  1. PATIENT SAFETY ORGANIZATION PRIVACY PROTECTION CENTER (PSOPPC) AND NETWORK OF PATIENT SAFETY DATABASES (NPSD) SYSTEMS$20.9M
    CORMAC CORPORATION· Fairfax County, VA· Professional services· Aug 2, 2021 – Sep 3, 2026· 75Q80121C00004
  2. MEDICAL EXPENDITURE PANEL SURVEY HOUSEHOLD COMPONENT (MEPS-HC) SURVEY$12.9M
    WESTAT, INC.· Montgomery County, MD· Professional services· Sep 30, 2025 – Sep 10, 2026· 75Q80125F32003
  3. AHRQ CLOUD ENCLAVE HOSTING & SECURITY COMPLIANCE SUPPORT$10.2M
    COMMUNICATIONS TRAINING ANALYSIS CORPORATION· Fairfax County, VA· IT & telecom· Jun 14, 2023 – Sep 10, 2026· 75Q80123F80007
  4. HCUP ENHANCEMENTS & ANALYTICS: NATIONAL DEATH INDEX, QUARTERLY DATA & ANALYSES$4.5M
    NATIONAL OPINION RESEARCH CENTER· Cook County, IL· Professional services· Sep 29, 2025 – Sep 28, 2026· 75Q80125F32006
  5. DISSEMINATION AND STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT SUPPORT FOR AHRQ'S NATIONAL CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE IN PRIMARY CARE RESEARCH (NCEPCR)$3.8M
    ABT GLOBAL LLC· Montgomery County, MD· Professional services· Sep 13, 2022 – Aug 24, 2026· 75Q80122F80007
  6. 2021 SYSTEMATIC EVIDENCE REVIEWS TO SUPPORT THE USPSTF - GROUP A$2.4M
    KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITALS· Montgomery County, MD· Research & development· Aug 2, 2021 – Jul 10, 2026· 75Q80121F32004
  7. IMPROVING THE MANAGEMENT OF MENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS$541K
    RESEARCH TRIANGLE INSTITUTE· Durham County, NC· Research & development· Jul 15, 2024 – Jan 15, 2026· 75Q80124F32009
  8. METHODS AND DISSEMINATION: COLLABORATION TO IMPROVE VALIDITY, CONSISTENCY, AND UTILITY OF SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS$350K
    KAISER FOUNDATION HOSPITALS· Montgomery County, MD· Research & development· Aug 31, 2020 – Dec 26, 2025· 75Q80120F32002

Federal grants & assistance awarded

Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality obligated $42M in federal assistance in FY2026, on 160 actions (0 new awards), −54% vs FY2025. Its largest program was 93.226 · Research on Healthcare Costs, Quality and Outcomes ($42M).

Assistance · FY2026
$42M
New awards
0
Actions
160
Since FY2021
$766.6M

Assistance by fiscal year

  1. 144.1MFY2021
  2. 152MFY2022
  3. 163MFY2023
  4. 174.4MFY2024
  5. 91.1MFY2025
  6. 42MFY2026

By type

  1. Grants$42M100%

Top programs

  1. 93.226 · Research on Healthcare Costs, Quality and Outcomes$42M100%

Top recipients (organizations)

  1. THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO$2.8M6.6%
    AURORA, CO
  2. THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY$2.7M6.4%
    BALTIMORE, MD
  3. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, THE$2.2M5.2%
    SAINT LOUIS, MO
  4. NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY$2M4.8%
    CHICAGO, IL
  5. BRIGHAM & WOMENS HOSPITAL INC$1.8M4.4%
    BOSTON, MA
  6. UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON$1.5M3.6%
    SEATTLE, WA
  7. ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI$1.4M3.3%
    NEW YORK, NY
  8. REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN$1.2M2.7%
    ANN ARBOR, MI

Where it went

  1. California$4.1M9.7%
  2. Maryland$3.9M9.4%
  3. Massachusetts$3.5M8.3%
  4. Pennsylvania$3M7.0%
  5. Texas$2.8M6.6%
  6. Colorado$2.8M6.6%
  7. Missouri$2.7M6.5%
  8. New York$2.5M5.9%
  9. Ohio$2.3M5.4%
  10. Illinois$2M4.8%

By state of the place of performance.

Source: Federal financial assistance transactions (Financial Assistance Broker Submission) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 10, 2026, loaded Oct 10, 2026 · FY2021–FY2026.

Federal grants & assistance

Subawards under this agency's awards

First-tier subawards that recipients of this agency's contracts and financial assistance reported, by the fiscal year of the subaward.

FY2026

  • Sub-contracts: $2.5M (8 subawards)
  • Sub-grants: $4.6M (64 subawards)

54 sub-recipients

Largest sub-recipients

  1. SOCIAL & SCIENTIFIC SYSTEMS, INC.$1.1M16%
    SILVER SPRING, MD · 1 subaward
  2. ADVOCATE HEALTH CARE NETWORK$745.3K10%
    DOWNERS GROVE, IL · 1 subaward
  3. OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, THE$611.2K8.6%
    COLUMBUS, OH · 1 subaward
  4. THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY$410.2K5.8%
    STANFORD, CA · 4 subawards
  5. UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN SYSTEM$375.4K5.3%
    MADISON, WI · 2 subawards
  6. UNIVERSITY OF UTAH$279K3.9%
    SALT LAKE CITY, UT · 2 subawards
  7. THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA$253.9K3.6%
    PHILADELPHIA, PA · 2 subawards
  8. FRED HUTCHINSON CANCER CENTER$220K3.1%
    SEATTLE, WA · 1 subaward
  9. MULTICARE HEALTH SYSTEM$219K3.1%
    TACOMA, WA · 1 subaward
  10. DENVER HEALTH AND HOSPITALS AUTHORITY$190K2.7%
    DENVER, CO · 1 subaward

Primes report first-tier subawards of $30,000 or more themselves, and many go unreported (GAO-24-106214). Reporting moved from FSRS to SAM.gov in March 2025 and fewer sub-contracts have been reported since. Amounts are what primes reported; they are never added to prime award totals.

Source: Subawards (first-tier sub-contracts and sub-grants reported under FFATA) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov (reports filed in SAM.gov, formerly FSRS)), data current to Oct 10, 2026, loaded Oct 10, 2026 · Subawards loaded from FY2021.

Who lobbies this agency

Organizations whose quarterly lobbying reports list this agency as contacted, ranked by the reports' spending. A report's amount covers all its issues and every agency it lists; reports do not split it.

Lobbying in 2026
$9.8M
Clients
24
Reports
49

The whole amount of every report that lists this agency.

Organizations lobbying it, 2026

  1. NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS (N.A.C.H.)$2.8M
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medicare and Medicaid
  2. Association of American Medical CollegesAI match · 100%$1.4M
    No FY2026 contracts in its family · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs
  3. AMERICAN COLLEGE OF CARDIOLOGY$1.3M
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Medicare and Medicaid, Tobacco
  4. AMERICAN PHYSICAL THERAPY ASSOCIATION$625.3K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs
  5. AMERICAN SOCIETY OF ANESTHESIOLOGISTS$489.5K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Medicare and Medicaid, Veterans
  6. TRINITY HEALTHAI match · 95%$480K
    0.0% of its family's FY2026 contracts from this agency · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medicare and Medicaid
  7. Infectious Diseases Society of AmericaAI match · 100%$459K
    No FY2026 contracts in its family · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs
  8. GUARDANT HEALTH$421K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Medicare and Medicaid
  9. Federation of State Medical BoardsAI match · 100%$330K
    0.0% of its family's FY2026 contracts from this agency · Health issues, Labor issues, antitrust and workplace
  10. American Osteopathic Association$286.1K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs
  11. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE$250K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Education
  12. American Society of Hematology$200K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs
  13. Mass General Brigham (formerly known as Partners HealthCare)$171K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs
  14. Society of Teachers of Family Medicine$122.5K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations
  15. Herbert J. Thomas Memorial Hospital Association (fka Thomas Health)$120K
    Not matched to a contract recipient · Health issues, Budget and appropriations, Medical and disease research, clinical labs

Lobbying amounts are the filers' own good-faith estimates on quarterly LD-2 reports (the law asks for amounts rounded to $10,000; under $5,000 need not be itemized), latest amendment only. When an organization files its own report, it replaces what outside firms report for it that quarter. Matches are by name. Lobbying and political giving are legal and public: they show engagement with government, not influence over any award. Correlation is not influence: these organizations' lobbying and their contracts are shown side by side, and nothing here implies either affected the other.

Source: Lobbying disclosures (LD-1 registrations, LD-2 quarterly reports, LD-203 contribution reports) (Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives), data current to Oct 10, 2026, loaded Oct 10, 2026 · 2023–2026.

Source: Committees, candidates and committee contributions to candidates (Federal Election Commission), data current to Oct 10, 2026, loaded Oct 10, 2026 · 2026, 2024, 2022.

Matches: Analisa AI name judgments (entity-match@1), updated Oct 5, 2026.

Committees that oversee and fund it

Congressional committees whose jurisdiction includes this agency, and the appropriations subcommittees that write its spending bill (Analisa's reading of the House and Senate rules; committees share jurisdiction). Leaders as currently published.

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Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 10, 2026, loaded Oct 10, 2026.